Race Tech ignored my request!

[sirthumpalot]

Well I had race tech rebuild my suspension, front and rear. They completely ignored my comments on the work request form. I put down that I weigh 155# and wanted the fork oil height at 120mm, the suspension comes back with the oil at 90mm. I call them up and say why did you do that? They say it's the level that they find works best for this bike. I asked for what weight and level rider??? They said just in general. I have no time to adjust it before next weekends ride, but I'm curious to hear from anyone who weighs around 155# and tried the oil level this high on a 426. Was it like riding a jack hammer? Also they didn't put any grease behind the dust wipers. For the price I expected more. Hopefully I'll get to find out how it works next weekend!!

[grayracer513]

It's always nice to get attentive, cooperative customer service, ain't it?

[Satch0922]

I have to ask....why did you use Race Tech? Did you not get the memo?

MxTech is the ticket.....trust me on that one !

http://www.mx-tech.com

[ripntear]

Sounds high to me for your weight.

I'm 205 lbs, "B" rider and mine are setting at 140mm with stock springs. I do enduros, trails etc.. so there is no big air my forks have to deal with. I was really skeptical when I got mine back from Factory Connection (had them re valved for enduro) and seen the oil level they had set them at. I have ridden several times now and love it. Firm and cushy!

I would definitely hit a practice before your race. You will probably wind up backing off the compression at least 2-4 clicks.

Good luck next week!

[RADRick]

Why send the stuff to Race Tech if you know how you want it set up? I mean, the reason you pay a professional is to gain from their expertise. RT has done a number of bikes for me over the years and I've never been dissatisfied. Go ride the thing before you go dissing them in public. Maybe they DO know more than you about suspension settings.

[sirthumpalot]

Thanks guys for the replies. RADRick to answer your concerns; I sent it to them for a full rebuild, front & rear (almost $400 in parts & labor). I don't have the tools or time these days to do it myself. My main reason for posting was to get an idea for what I'm in for on my next ride with 90mm oil height in the forks. So please be clear; I'm happy with all aspects of the RT service, with the exception that I wrote "set fork oil hight to 120mm" and it came back set to 90mm. I expected a bit more personal attention for the price. They might adjust it for free if I asked, but the cost of shipping makes this not a realistic option. So back to my main question; has anyone weighing arond 155-160# tried 90mm oil height, and if so what were your results outdoors?

[Ga426owner]

Thanks guys for the replies. RADRick to answer your concerns; I sent it to them for a full rebuild, front & rear (almost $400 in parts & labor). I don't have the tools or time these days to do it myself. My main reason for posting was to get an idea for what I'm in for on my next ride with 90mm oil height in the forks. So please be clear; I'm happy with all aspects of the RT service, with the exception that I wrote "set fork oil hight to 120mm" and it came back set to 90mm. I expected a bit more personal attention for the price. They might adjust it for free if I asked, but the cost of shipping makes this not a realistic option. So back to my main question; has anyone weighing arond 155-160# tried 90mm oil height, and if so what were your results outdoors?

I was running that oil height for my weight 195lbs - I believe, but do not quote me, that it is posted on RT webs site/rates that 90mm is for 195-205lbs... It will be too stiff for you in my opinion...what spring rate are you using stock? or .47's

You can remove the top of the forks and readjust the oil height pretty easy (if you have the correct tool to measure oil height- motion

pro makes one)w/o taking the forks completely off. Do you know what kind of fluid they used?

[Fastest1]

Personally I think it is funny that you send your suspension to a reputable builder and tell him what to do. All they really need is type of bike, weight with gear, level of riding ability, and type of riding you do. The rest is their responsibilty to make the bike handle as well as it can in their opinion. You havent even ridden the bike but you are concerned about oil height? If you knew so much about suspension (I dont know if you do or dont) why didnt you do it yourself? The only time I ever put grease under the wiper, I had a leak in less than 2 hours of riding. I had never had leaking seals prior to using grease and I have never had a problem since removing it. I can understand a little anger had you requested greased seals, the specific oil height etc. if you had experience with their setup. I was very pleased with their setup when roadracing but I let the experts do the calculating and I rode what they gave me, it was sweet! Try it. evaluate its shortcomings (if there are any) and inform them of your new problems. It is not a 1 shot deal nor will it be the best in all situations. Not trying to piss you off, just my experience. I wouldnt tell RHC or a notable engine builder what clearances or lift to run either with out a lot of interaction with the designer/builder.

[RADRick]

RADRick to answer your concerns; I sent it to them for a full rebuild, front & rear (almost $400 in parts & labor). I don't have the tools or time these days to do it myself.

I understand that. My point is that you don't send your forks to a professional suspension shop and then tell them how they should do it. If all you wanted was someone to rebuild your forks the way you wanted them done, you should have sent them to a Yamaha dealer. Race Tech expects that by sending them your forks, you want the benefit of their experience and know-how in setting them up. You're certainly paying for it.

Would you send your engine to Eric Gorr with notes on how to rebuild it? I dare say he'd probably send it back untouched. Race Tech are suspension experts, not a run-of-the-mill rebuild shop. They have a great customer satisfaction policy, but it's based on you being unhappy with their setup, not yours. That's like telling a chef how to cook.

[TimFurryBalls]

I would trust them and ride it and go from there. With their Gold valves and stuff, spring rates and specific oil heights could be thrown out the door. I personally don't grease my wipers anymore. I've found through experience and through other's experiences that the grease just traps more crap under there and can cause MORE leaks. A dry wiper seems to need to be occasionally cleaned, but at least you won't have to worry about crap being stuck up in there, rubbing against your fork. . .

[sirthumpalot]

Thanks all for the replies. The forks are 100% stock, as is the shock. All I had done was a rebuild (replace all wear parts). After a few years of testing, 120mm works best for me. I don't have time to adjust it so I'll get at least one ride in at 90mm, but with 120mm I rarely bottom and it's bordering on too harsh in the big high speed bumps so I'm not expecting 30mm more oil to be any more plush. Actually it felt much nicer on my last ride when a bunch of fork oil had leaked out.

In regards to grease under the wipers; what I just had replaced were the stock seals (the bike is an 01'). I ride 99% MX. So yes I'm a believer in very light (thin) grease under the wipers. I know they'll be stiff at first just from the new parts, but I'll report back what I find.

[ripntear]

I'm looking forward to reading your review.

Good luck!

[Fastest1]

Grease under the wiper will cause leaking in MX, SX or Trails.

[Ga426owner]

Thanks all for the replies. The forks are 100% stock, as is the shock. All I had done was a rebuild (replace all wear parts). After a few years of testing, 120mm works best for me. I don't have time to adjust it so I'll get at least one ride in at 90mm, but with 120mm I rarely bottom and it's bordering on too harsh in the big high speed bumps so I'm not expecting 30mm more oil to be any more plush. Actually it felt much nicer on my last ride when a bunch of fork oil had leaked out.

In regards to grease under the wipers; what I just had replaced were the stock seals (the bike is an 01'). I ride 99% MX. So yes I'm a believer in very light (thin) grease under the wipers. I know they'll be stiff at first just from the new parts, but I'll report back what I find.

back the compression out in the forks a least 3-5 clicks from stock setting - or more if that is still too harsh - you may like the results

[Fastest1]

Sorry for the reply on my part then. I was thinking you had it revalved by them. I hope all works out well in the race the way they are. Lowering the level would be easy as you know.

[Kurt Meyer]

House of Horsepower in Eugene Oregon will listen to your requests and will return to you the best suspension you've ever had. Richard Wilson is a genius and the fact that 75% of the racers in the OMRA racing series have House of Horsepower suspensions kind of speaks for itself.

Good luck with Race Tech.

Kurt Meyer

04 YZ450F

H.O.H. Suspension

Rekluse Clutch

Trail Tech +10 flywheel, reduced sweep, bars, and Lynx computer

Scott Triple Clamp

PMB Spark Arrestor and Quiet Core

[SureBlue]

Grease under the wiper will cause leaking in MX, SX or Trails.

Fully agree and been trying to tell that everybody for years. Just like lubing the cables will collect all the dirt in them.

[btc20mx]

dude why dont you send them to me? I can help you out. Ive been working on suspension for awhile now and think ive got it pretty down pat with setup and what not! race tech is terrible. If you dont want me to touch your bike then I would suggest pro action. My dad used to own a 426 so I am familiar with that bike.

[sirthumpalot]

Actually I am (so far) happy with the Race Tech work, with the exception of the oil level issue; which is frustrating, but relatively minor. Everything else has been as-advertised.

In regards to the grease; I've been greasing under the wipers for years and I got a lot of life from my seals; from 01' to 05' on the stock seals, 99% MX riding. Maybe this has to do with the type of grease that is used? I'm using a very very light lithium soap based grease. It's about as thick as half melted butter; almost liquid.

[Fastest1]

I actually used RT's wiper grease if I remember correctly. All I know was I never have to change seals and when I used the grease it started leaking almost immediately. I will never use it again and dont feel there is any need since seals last for quite a few years anyway. BTW dont use an oring on the fork leg to measure travel. I used to use that trick on mountain bikes and it worked great, however on my roadracing bike the fork swallowed a huge oring. You would have never thought it would pass the seal. It did! Didnt do any damage but it did allow all of the fork oil to squirt out.